


Welcome to the Aftermath

by AryaElric (SongficSenpai)



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Cute, M/M, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Welcome to the Madness (Yuri!!! on Ice), Yuri Plisetsky Swears, beka - Freeform, drunk, otayuri - Freeform, yura - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-26
Updated: 2017-07-30
Packaged: 2018-11-05 07:26:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 13,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11008734
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SongficSenpai/pseuds/AryaElric
Summary: This is what happens after Yuri and Otabek perform "Welcome to the Madness". I'm planning a slow build to them getting into a relationship.





	1. Equal Opposite Reactions

**Author's Note:**

> I don't have a beta reader for this so any feedback is appreciated. <3

Otabek raised his head and looked across the messy dressing room to where he heard his name being called. His gaze was immediately met by Yuri’s striking emerald eyes. If he was going to be honest with himself they still had the power to freeze him in place.

“Otabek?” Yuri asked again. A softer tone in his voice this time.

“Sorry, I was just thinking about the performance.” He said, which wasn’t too far from the truth. He could still feel Yuri’s soft finger against his tongue. He wondered how he even got to this point. Just a few days ago Yuri had only been a precious memory from the past. Now they were close, he tried to keep any hopes for the future out of his mind. However, the fact that Yuri was still dressed in that god forsaken outfit didn’t help. Of course he would never say anything about this to Yuri himself, he didn’t want to take any chances when it came to their friendship. The friendship itself was still brand new, but Otabek already treasured it. Thankfully Yuri chimed in right after his words, preventing an awkward silence.

“I know right! The crowd went crazy, it was so amazing. They all loved it!” Otabek loved the way Yuri’s eyes lit up as he spoke about their, so he guessed, heart-attack inducing performance. Yuri continued, “And ripping my glove off like that! It was so cool! I couldn’t believe it when I felt your mouth around my finger.”

Otabek distracted himself from falling into the memory again with his next question. ‘Friends don’t dwell on things like that.’ He reminded himself, already well aware that his feelings for Yuri were greater than that of a friend. It wasn’t love at first sight, but it was pretty close. He first crush was, unfortuantely, Yuri Plisetsky. “You don’t think it was too much?”

“Nope! Asking you to join me was the best decision I could have made, but don’t you dare tell Victor and Katsudon it was their fault.” Yuri laughed at that, a genuine smile falling on his face. “Anyway, I knew you’d bring it but oh my god Otabek that was perfect!” Otabek smiled, he was glad he had been able to help Yuri. He considered himself extremely lucky that Yuri had even wanted his help at all.

“No problem.” Truthfully, he had just done the glove thing without thinking about it, he never would have done so if he had. Something about the way Yuri’s hand landed so close to his face triggered the response he had built up a couple of years ago when practicing for a small community theatre show he took part in. The first and last to be specific, he was honestly a bit scarred by the experience. How actors could do stuff like that all the time was a mystery to him. He’d much rather play fifty clubs than act in another show. Otabek was taken out of his thoughts again by a knock on the door.

“Still changing.” Yuri called with a wink, pulling his tank top over his head.

“Yurio,” Victor said from the other side of the door. Otabek couldn’t believe he was hearing the legend’s voice. “You better hurry. Yakov looked like he was ready to kill you after watching that.” At that Otabek mouthed “I’m sorry” to the other boy. Yuri only rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, well he can suck it!”

“Yurio…”

“That’s not my name! Anyway, just leave me alone. I’ll be out in a few, okay?” Yuri turned back to Otabek. “Ugh, apparently some people just can’t understanding amazing if it hits them in the fucking face.” A moment later he added “And don’t you dare apologize again.”

“They just weren’t expecting it Yuri.” Otabek turned as Yuri began to change out of the skin tight leather pants, giving the younger boy some privacy.

“Well that doesn’t change the fact that they’re being ridiculous.”

A comfortable silence fell between the two of them as Yuri finished changing. Otabek turned back to Yuri.

“Thanks by the way” Yuri said as he slipped his normal shirt back on. “Most people wouldn’t agree to something like that so last minute. And they definitely wouldn’t commit so well.”

“No problem, that’s what friends are for.” Otabek felt lucky to even be able to say that.

“Well I’m gonna go let them all murder me apparently.” They both laughed at that. “Let’s hang out later.”

“Okay.” Otabek responded, and with that promise Yuri left Otabek alone in the dressing room.

* * *

 

Yuri walked out of the dressing room, leaving his best friend behind. He found his thoughts lingered on Otabek even thought they were apart. It was weird to think that even though he had only know the older boy a couple of days he was already Yuri’s favorite person, well except for Grandpa but he didn’t count. As he turned the corner to head to the waiting room and find his coach Yuri ran into the man, who was apparently on his way to the dressing room. ‘Dodged a bullet with that one.’ Yuri thought. Unfortunately, Yakov’s face was even more red than usual and Yuri could tell he was in for a long lecture.

“What was that!” his coach yelled. Yuri started to tune the man out, he’d wait until Yakov cooled down before entering the conversation. At times like this it was probably best to let the old man get his frustration out, and Otabek was right the performance was indeed a surprise. He smiled thinking how much better it was than the follow up to his free skate that Lilia had choreographed. Not that that wasn’t good, just this was so much more his style. “Are you happy about this mess?” Yakov asked. ‘Shit’ Yuri thought.

“Sorry” he said before Yakov launched back into his rant.  Meanwhile, Yuri decided to think about things he could do with his new friend when they hung out later on.

 

* * *

After changing Otabek walked out of the dressing rom. He could hear yelling down the hall. If there was any other way he could have gone Otabek would have, but this was the only route out of the dressing room area. He carefully turned the corner and saw Yuri very disinterestedly listening to his coach yell at him. The older man’s eyes caught sight of Otabek.

“And you!” Otabek stopped dead.

“Leave him out of it Yakov.” Yuri said, saving him. “It wasn’t Otabek’s fault. It was all my decision.” He turned to face Otabek. Otabek cursed his heart for the slight flutter. “Later.” And Otabek was freed from the conversation. He felt a little bad leaving Yuri behind, but there wasn’t much he could do.


	2. Then and/or Now

Otabek sat in his hotel room, looking down at his phone. As someone who rarely used social media he wasn’t used to the stream of notifications popping up on his phone from twitter and Instagram and all the other sites his coach had _strongly suggested_ he join. This wasn’t the first time it had uncharacteristically blew up in the days since he had arrived in Barcelona. It wasn’t like he shouldn’t have suspected this though. A mysterious person so boldly entering the life of the GPF gold medalist was sure to attract attention. As his thoughts turned to focus on his new friend he found himself scrolling through the boy’s Instagram. Past the photos of the GPF and their time hanging out in Barcelona Otabek found pictures of Yuri’s life in Russia. The rink was beautiful, better than his own, and there were many pictures of a fluffy brown and white feline. Otabek was looking at a picture of the cat sitting on a green ottoman when he got a text from Yuri.

Yuri: R u still free to hang out?

Otabek: Yeah, when do you want to meet up?

Yuri: Now?

Otabek: Okay.

Yuri: Cool, I’ll be over in 5

Otabek put down the phone and got up. He grabbed his team Kazakhstan track suit and threw it in his suitcase. His room wasn’t messy, especially compared to a normal teens’, but he still figured it would be a good idea to clean up. He was extra sure to carefully hide away the few things he had brought for his gig the night before. Even though Yuri had insisted it was cool, he’d still be happy if it never came up again. He knew he wasn’t that good, after all, his work as a DJ was just a hobby to him. Others worked so much harder at it.

Soon enough he heard a knock on the door and went to let Yuri in.

* * *

 

Yuri hugged his friend as soon as the door to his hotel room opened. He had endured quite the lecture from Yakov and had just found the opportunity to escape from his coach. He refused to be babysat be his coach and the Russian team all night.

“Hey Otabek” he said before pushing past his friend into the room, just barely missing the look of surprise on Otabek’s face. He plopped down on the full size bed and looked around. ‘Otabek’s room is always so neat’ he thought to himself. This wasn’t the first time they had met up there before heading out. He wondered what Otabek’s real room looked like, what kinds of things he had around. Yuri could guess there were quite a few medals but other than that he was unsure. The hotel room itself was in stark contrast to Yuri’s own room. He made a mental note to clean wherever he was staying beforehand if Otabek was ever going to visit. He hated cleaning, but would much rather do that than have Otabek think he was a slob.

“So shopping? Dinner? What do you want to do?”

“I don’t have any particular requests.” Otabek said. This was the opportunity Yuri had been hoping for.

“Okay,” he said, already able to feel a devilish smile spread onto his face. “How about you take me back to that club?” He was definitely interested in learning more about this newly discovered part of his friend’s life. He had only listened to that one song he had used for his exhibition skate, and if that was anything like the rest of Otabek’s work Yuri definitely needed to hear more.

 

* * *

Otabek’s head was going crazy, yet he somehow managed to keep a cool exterior. He didn’t think he could live up to Yuri’s expectations and didn’t want to let his friend down. “Yuri,” he started after a couple of seconds. “You know I can’t take you your only 15.” He congratulated himself on finding a logical response while his mind was filled with worry. He wouldn’t play tonight, he had no gigs lined up, but the idea of being in a club with Yuri again brought its own set of pressure. He definitely couldn’t dance as well as the younger boy for a start.

“Okay but we both know that you only said that last night because you didn’t want me to see you DJ.” Yuri said sitting up. “Which I don’t even understand because you were so cool up there!”

 Otabek fought back a smile at the compliment. “Yuri, it’s the law. I can’t change it.”

“Well the law is stupid.”

Otabek questioned if the club would even let Yuri back in after he climbed on the sound board last night. Hopefully he could change the conversation soon because if the last few days had proved anything, he was unable to deny Yuri anything too many times in a row.

“How about we grab food and just see how it goes?” Otabek said, hoping that by the time they finished eating Yuri would have forgotten his wish.

“Fine.” Yuri said slightly begrudgingly.

“Wait,” Otabek said, remembering something. “Isn’t the banquet tonight?”  Something that neither of them should miss, but especially not Yuri, the winner of the competition.

“Who cares about the stupid banquet? Anyway I’m definitely still too scarred from last year to go again.”

“Yuri, you won. You have to go. Besides I wouldn’t mind checking it out again. Last year wasn’t that bad.”

“WASN’T THAT BAD? Where were you the whole night?” Otabek just stared in response to Yuri’s outburst. “Fine, we’ll go. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Despite how annoyed Yuri was acting Otabek could still see a trace of a smile on his lips. “Well I’ve gotta go get dressed up now so I’ll see you there.” The skinny jeans and hoodie Yuri was wearing would definitely not be proper attire for the banquet, even though he did look really good in them. With their future plans settled Yuri got up and left the room. Otabek found himself alone again and began to look for his own outfit for the banquet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyone up for banquet fun round 2?
> 
> Also, please try not to get too used to daily uploads. Right now I'm just trying to get the story rolling. I'll try my best to be timely but I'm not gonna comprise quality for quantity. I'm guessing the next chapter will be longer and involve way more characters so that might be a few days away for sure.
> 
> As always any feedback is totally welcome! Thanks :)


	3. A Moment’s Peace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is part 1 of the Banquet.

Otabek stood across from Yuuri in the banquet hall, Victor at his side. They were wearing matching navy suits. Even though Yuri would probably make fun of them when he arrived, Otabek thought it was sweet. Many of the skaters were still arriving and Yuri was nowhere to be seen. Otabek didn’t really care much for the other skaters, but he had grown closer to a few from the time they met up with him and Yuri at the restaurant. Despite being in the middle of a conversation, Otabek found he couldn’t stop his eyes from checking each time he heard the door open.

He heard Victor coo beside him “Looking for anyone Otabek? I have to say you put on a mighty fine performance earlier today.”

“Just waiting for friends to arrive.” He said before adding, “Thank you.” He assumed Victor was talking about Yuri’s exhibition program instead of his own but he didn’t really feel like getting into that topic with the older man.

“Victor leave the boy alone.” Yuri said, before another skater entered the room, Otabek’s eyes quickly confirming he wasn’t Yuri. He recognized the man from the dinner they had all had before the competition started. The skater quickly walked over to join them.

“Phichit” he said, smiling.

“Yes, I remember you from the restaurant.” Otabek said in response to the other man’s statement.

“Likewise” he said before turning to Yuuri and Victor. “I haven’t seen you two since the exhibition but that was amazing. So adorable. Too bad it’s going to be a long engagement…” Otabek started to tune out the conversation as the doors opened and Yuri walked in.

Yuri always looked good, that was a given, but this time he looked indescribable. A maroon jacket paired with black slacks. A cheetah pocket square sticking out of the coat. Yuri had his hair pulled back into neat braids. He seemed to glow in the semi dim yellow lighting of the room. Otabek couldn’t help but smile as he caught Yuri’s eyes, the other boy immediately giving him an eye roll. He turned to hide his grin but Otabek was glad they had decided to come. He realized these thoughts were sort of weird for someone to have towards their friend, but he had already admitted to himself that Yuri had passed the boundary from friend to crush at some point, so he allowed them for the time being.

Yuri began to make his way toward the group and Otabek. The chorus of congratulations came as he did so. A few people complimented his exhibition skate, but that topic lay mostly buried. Yuri’s eyes lit up at the compliments though. They eventually turned to Otabek.

“So what did _you_ think?” He asked Otabek with a sly grin.

“I hardly think I can be considered an impartial opinion Yuri”

“True” he said, and added after a couple of seconds “What are you doing here with all these old guys come on?” At that, he literally dragged Otabek out of the conversation. Not that he would rather be with them than with Yuri anyway. While being dragged away he heard various protests from Victor and Phichit, Yuuri’s only visible reaction was to grin at their retreating figures.

After some milling around and getting trapped in several conversations Yuri stopped abruptly and turned to Otabek. “God there’s no place to talk quietly around here.”

Otabek chuckled “Well, I assume that would be a little hard since you did win the competition, remember?”

“Yeah, yeah” Yuri said, waving his hand. “They could still give me a moment’s peace though. Besides not like they actually care to talk to me.”

Otabek was a little saddened by the last part, mostly because it was unfortunately true. Too many people wanted to speak with Yuri just because he had won, just because he had made history. Nobody really cared about Yuri himself.

“How about this?” Otabek asked, looking down into Yuri’s eyes. “You can go and talk to the reporters and everyone for an hour and then we can hang out and have fun and do whatever you like.”

“Half an hour” Yuri said, eyes narrowing.

“Forty five minutes”

“Deal!” Yuri said. “You know I don’t know what Yakov was saying about you being a bad influence. If anything it’s the other way around. See you later Beka!”

With that Yuri was gone. Otabek was left standing still in shock. Yakov didn’t like him, well after the exhibition skate that was understandable. But that nickname. The nickname Yuri had given him still rang in his head. Beka. He liked it. It fit like the old leather jacket he wore while on his bike. It felt comfortable, and it was only made better by the fact the Yuri had come up with it himself. A small smile twisted the corners of his lips.

* * *

 

Yuri walked away, pleased with himself. He had been looking for the courage to call Otabek the cool nickname that had come to him last night all day and he had finally gotten the chance. He hoped Otabek liked it, he should probably check with the man himself at some point.

He saw a reporter eye him and took a deep breath. He could handle this for forty five minutes, right? Now it may seem like forever but getting to hang out with Otabek would be worth it. Though the hours they’d spend together would probably seem much shorter than this time.

 

* * *

 

Otabek was walking away from an interview around fifty minutes later when he saw Yuri heading toward him. He was surprised Yuri had been willing to wait longer than the specified time. But then he realized something was off, the sight of the younger boy walking over was slightly unsettling. The answer came when Yuri reached him and started talking, leaning heavily on Otabek’s arm. Otabek cut him off.

“Yuri are you drunk?”

“Well you were busy and I was waiting. It’s not like I haven’t had alcohol before.” As Otabek opened his mouth to protest Yuri added, “Don’t worry.” He put his finger to Otabek’s lips. Otabek resisted the memory from earlier that day coming back to him. “I know the drinking age is 16 here but that’s stupid, there’s a reason we don’t have one in Russia.”

“Yuri” Otabek said, worried.

“Teaches them to just leave it all out anyway.”

“Okay” Otabek said, giving up. The fact that Yuri could drink in Russia at whatever age was still weird to him. The drinking age in Kazakhstan was 21, and though many people would see it as lame he still followed it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey thank you all for reading so far. I have a question and an announcement.  
> 1) I think as far as a schedule goes I'm going to try to post once on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday and leave the weekdays for writing.  
> 2) I came up with the idea for a prequel, is that something you guys would be interested in?
> 
> Also, :) Beka made its appearance.
> 
> New notes from the future: It has been pointed out to me that I got the drinking ages wrong in the two countries, but for continuity sake I’m going to keep them as they are. (Teaches me to get my info off of Wikipedia without double checking, I know I know better than this.)


	4. A Glove Upon that Hand

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They've met back up at the banquet. .... I feel like I'm pretty bad at these summaries.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to announce that we now have chapter titles. Yay!

Otabek looked down at the semi drunk Russian in front of him, but quickly found he couldn’t handle the strength of the other boy’s gaze. Yuri was staring at Otabek, and after what felt like a lifetime he said “Come on Beka you should have one too. You’re legal here.”

“I thought you wanted to get away from everyone?” Otabek asked, amused. “What if they spot us?”

Yuri leaned in closer, his breath on Otabek’s neck. Otabek clenched his jaw. “I’ve already thought of that, we’ll just have to become ninjas.” Yuri said before bursting out laughing. “Sneak past them with our mad skills.” Yuri managed to get out through the giggles ripping through his body.

“How about we spare them our ‘mad skills’ and wait over there for a bit” Otabek said pointing toward the doors that led out to a balcony he had found while waiting earlier. “Can’t afford to give ourselves away can we?”

Yuri gave him a bit of side eye but followed when Otabek started to head over to the area.

* * *

 

Yuri tried to think about how he could get Otabek to join him and let loose. Once he had seen the alcohol sitting out he began to wonder what kind of drunk Otabek was and hadn’t been able to get it off his mind since. However, it appeared he’d slowly have to work up to that. Despite the bad boy appearance, Otabek was actually pretty straight laced.

As Otabek walked toward the doors he had pointed out Yuri was a bit suspicious at first, thinking his friend meant to distract him from his original mission. Eventually, he realized this only made it that much more of a challenge. He smiled, he would corrupt Otabek. It was just the timing that was unclear.

He followed Otabek out, wobbling a little from the drink a couple of times. He was just drunk enough where his mind would cloud from time to time but other than that he was fine. What he had already drunk would wear off soon enough.

He reached the balcony soon enough and closed the door behind him. It would keep everyone from realizing he was out here, giving them some peace. Less interruptions would make it easier for Yuri to achieve his goal. He struck a pose against the doorway to grab Otabek’s attention.

 

* * *

Otabek turned to see Yuri posed against the closed door. One lanky arm above his head, his fingers posed just so. Yuri was channeling a beautiful elegance that seemed a little dangerous in origin to Otabek. He found himself wondering what the smaller blonde boy was up to.

“So” Yuri started, his voice drawn out slightly. “Now that you have me all alone, what sort of trouble shall we get up to?”

“I thought you said I was the good influence” Otabek teased, remembering their conversation from earlier. Though he would try his best to keep them out of trouble, a part of him wondered what exactly Yuri was suggesting.

“Right! So then I’ll just have to come up with it.” Yuri said, taking a step in. Before Yuri could do anything else, or Otabek guessed, think of whatever trouble he wanted to get into Otabek heard the door behind them open. They both turned to see Yuri’s teammate, enter in a beautiful emerald green dress, complementing the short red curls that sat atop her head.

“Hello Otabek” she said, turning to greet the Kazakh man with a smile. She seemed a bit surprised to see him there.

“Mila” Yuri whined, interrupting the greeting about halfway through the word hello.

“Hello” Otabek responded with a slight head nod, ignoring Yuri’s comment.

“I didn’t know you were out here. I saw him swaying over here and just wanted to make sure he was okay.”

“Yep” Otabek said. He often found it difficult to find words when conversing with strangers. He always second guessed how they would interpret what he said. He definitely didn’t want to cause issues with someone because he had said the wrong thing. This had thankfully never happened with Yuri, as the younger boy was able to pass the awkward acquaintance stage and have normal friend levels of conversation with him in less than a day. Sure there were a few things Otabek wished he’d phrased better, but he was wracked with nerves at the moment. Just managing to ask Yuri if he wanted to be friends was reason enough to be proud, no need to linger on the phrasing.

“Just get out of here old hag. I don’t need you to babysit me.” Yuri spat at Mila.

Mila leaned in towards the younger boy, “You know I’m actually the same age as Otabek right?”

“Whatever, I don’t need a babysitter.” They both looked at him at that. “’I’m fine, see” he said, and proceeded to walk past Otabek in a straight line. “I’m not that drunk” he added a mumbled “yet” before continuing “so just leave me alone.” The last part aimed right at Mila.

Mila opened her mouth to say something in response but decided better and turned to Otabek asking “Please just watch him” before turning and heading out. They both followed her with their eyes as she did so, closing the door behind her.

“Fucking finally” Yuri said, and turned to lean on the balcony. This was the first time they were hanging out when there wasn’t a thousand things for them to do the next. It was peaceful. Otabek took this moment to look at Yuri, admiring the sight before his eyes. Yuri was looking out over the city, the wind played with his bangs.  The slight movement keeping Otabek present. Yuri’s hand was on his chin, Romeo’s words came to the forefront Otabek’s mind in that moment “O, that I were a glove upon that hand” (II.ii.25). As Yuri stared over the city some light that made it through the thin curtains that covered the glass of the door illuminated his back. Otabek almost couldn’t rip his eyes away from the sight but he knew any longer would alert Yuri to his feelings. So Otabek joined him, leaning on the balcony and viewing the beautiful city at night below them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I'm still up for writing a prequel if anyone wants it.
> 
> Also, any feedback on the main story is still appreciated
> 
> Note, I'm a huge Shakespeare nerd so when I'd realized how perfect that quote went with what I'd written I couldn't resist okay. I also totally love the head cannon of an Otabek who reads a lot so it was just too perfect to resist.


	5. Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When we last saw them Yuri and Otabek were staring out over the beautiful city of Barcelona at night, alone on a balcony. What will happen next?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> By the way, I might go back and edit this chapter more in the future. I ended up being pretty busy today and could only edit it so much but I wanted to make sure I got it up for you guys.

The two stood, looking out over the city for what could have been hours, but was probably only minutes. Time passed differently when they spent it together. Moments of peace became eternal and relaxing. Otabek had never felt so at peace with someone beside his family. However, as with all moments of silence it was eventually broken. Otabek’s phone started going off in his pocket, the ringtone rudely interrupting them.

He knew the ringtone, it was his parents. He reasoned he should probably answer the call, they’d probably want to congratulate him on his routines. Otabek realized he hadn’t had the chance to actually talk to them since before his free skate. Everything had been so busy, between the schedule, his gig at the club, and Yuri’s last minute routine. While he missed them, he realized he’d rather spend these last few moments alone with Yuri before they both had to leave tomorrow. He briefly pulled his phone out swiped to decline the call before putting it back in his pocket.

“You should get that.” Yuri said, unmoving. His eyes still focused on the city in front of them.

“I’m sure it’s nothing important.”

“Beka.” At that word Otabek found he had already given in. “I can wait, especially if it does turn out to be important. Who called you anyway?”

“My family.”

Yuri looked over in surprise. “Call them back.” Yuri stood up, straightening his back. “Don’t worry I’ll return but you had better have had a long conversation by then.” With that Yuri turned and very purposefully left the balcony, but not before giving Otabek one final stern look and a gesture showing that he’d be watching.

Otabek pulled out his phone, not really sure what he would say to his family, they had a lot to catch up on. He decided to start by figuring why exactly they had called in the first place. A little surprised to see there was a new voice mail on his phone Otabek put in his passcode and started by listening to it.

* * *

 

Yuri checked through the door to make sure Otabek got on his phone before returning to the party. Family was important. Yuri didn’t have a close relationship with his parents, so he saw the value in whatever Otabek had with his. He didn’t want to get in the middle of it.

He realized he didn’t really know much about Otabek’s family. What they were like, how many of them there were. He made up his mind to ask Otabek when he went back.

 

* * *

Otabek hung up his phone, finally managing to say goodbye to his family. They had all passed around the phone so they could each congratulate him. As he slipped the phone into the top pocket of his jacket he heard the door open and close. He looked up ready to say hello to Yuri, but was surprised to see the redheaded figure skater was back.

“Hey, give me your number” She said as soon as he looked up. “Yuri is like family. Despite the amount of shit he gives me I still care about him. Plus anyone who can even slightly subdue him is cool in my book.”

“Come on I need some pointers” she teased, poking his side. All of this happened so fast that it took Otabek this long to realize what she was asking.

Otabek handed over his phone, “Here.”

She smiled, “Thanks. I’ll text you.” She said, handing his phone back to him once she had grabbed his number.

“See you later.” He said as she began to make her way out. He chided himself for how awkward he must have seemed then. He really wasn’t good with people he didn’t know.

As she left the balcony Yuri appeared in the doorway. He began to walk past her. Yuri gave her a look, suspicious of her presence. She only smiled and waved goodbye to him, mouthing the word along with the action in a way that could only seem obnoxious to Yuri. Otabek wondered if he was about to see more harsh words exchanged between the two of them. Thankfully that didn’t happen and Mila closed the door behind her, leaving the two of them alone again.

“What was that about?” Yuri asked, finally turning his attention to Otabek now that Mila was gone.

“She just wanted my number.” His phone chimed in his pocket, proving the point.

“That old hag. Why?”

“I don’t really know.”

“Be careful. She can be quite annoying.”

“I’m sure it will be fine.”

Yuri eyed him, checking the veracity of his statement, Otabek felt he was being interrogated by those lovely green eyes. He was unable to move, pinned down by them. “Okay” was all that Yuri said before he looked away again.

“My sister liked the routine” Otabek offered. Feeling that he should say something about the phone call. Yuri would appreciate this at least. He didn’t need to know about the rest.

After Yuri had questioned him to the point he thoroughly understood her thoughts on the routine, he went on to ask Otabek about the rest of his family. Otabek tried his best to answer all of his friend’s questions. Thankfully Yuri kept the questions respectful, Otabek could feel the care his friend was giving to his feelings. Eventually Yuri got another devilish look in his eye.

“Okay,” He said standing up straight. “You’ve stalled long enough. It’s time for alcohol.”

“Yuri, is that really worth it? You’ll be back in Russia by tomorrow night anyway…” Otabek regretted the words as soon as they came out of his mouth. They hung there in silence. Neither of them had really talked about the fact that they’d be leaving the next, heading to two completely different countries and unable to see each other.

“Yeah I think I do need a drink. Let’s go.” And with that Yuri grabbed Otabek’s arm, trying to drag the larger man from the balcony.

“Yuri. I don’t drink.”

“Oh” Yuri said, understanding now. “Well you should have just said it. That’s fine, but I’m totally still getting one.”

Otabek hid his smile by turning his head and followed Yuri back into the party. Now that it was getting later most of the official press was gone and the skaters were left to themselves.


	6. Drunk Kitten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And so the banquet continues.

In the past few hours everyone had had a bit to drink, standing around and talking to each other. It was always a relief when the press left and the skaters could just be themselves. Yuri was trying to convince Otabek to get a snapchat when Yuuri and Victor made their way over, Phichit in their wake.

“Yuri” The older Yuuri swayed slightly “you better come back with us.” He grabbed onto Victor’s arm, who buckled slightly under the weight. Phichit stood by. Otabek guessed he was ready to take the two older drunk men to their room.

“Yes, Phichit is taking us to our rooms.”

“NOooo. I’m staying.” Yuri said as he fought the hands trying to pull him away, clinging onto Otabek. “Beka can bring me back.” Yuri paused, “He’s sober see.” He said, poking Otabek in the jaw.

Otabek slowly brought Yuri’s hand down from his face, while receiving looks of pity from the couple. Phichit was trying to hold back laughter behind them, evidently Phichit was currently sober as well.

“Would you mind Otabek?” Victor asked.

“Would it be too much of a bother?” Yuuri chimed in.

“Sure, no problem at all.” He didn’t mind spending some extra time with Yuri, and he had been planning on making sure the younger boy got back alright anyway.

Yuri beamed up at him and that made whatever trouble Yuri would try to get himself into in this state worth it.

“Byeeee” Yuri said, dragging out the word and smiling like an idiot.

“Okay!” Phichit chimed in, clapping his hands. “Now that we know Yuri’s going to be okay let’s get you two out of here. We do not need a repeat of last year.” He turned the two men and started pushing them out of the room, despite their protests.

Otabek did not envy Phichit his job, it looked like the couple was quite a handful when drunk. Although he had heard stories at the dinner he wondered how bad last year really was, he had left early and had missed the ‘action’. Part of him wished he had stayed to see Yuri in the dance off, he was willing to bet Yuri had been way better than he had made it seem.

 

* * *

 Yuri’s head was fuzzy but he still felt like he had a handle on the situation. He felt safe with Beka as his ‘designated sober buddy’ or whatever Phichit had called himself for the sickening couple. That safety in mind Yuri reached out for another glass.

“Maybe you should stop” Otabek said at Yuri’s side. He was standing close enough that if Yuri wobbled slightly he would fall against the man. The proximity felt comforting.

“Don’t worry I trust you” he smiled and grabbed Otabek’s arm.

Otabek raised his eyebrow in response.

“I’ll be fine.” he said, before downing his drink.

Yuri could feel his mouth hanging open slightly. He reached out for another glass, his head was not nearly gone enough to distract him from the annoyances of earlier and his flight tomorrow.

Just then he heard a very familiar and annoying voice at his ear.

“What’s up you two?” JJ asked as he threw his arms around them, pushing into the tiny bit of space left between them.

Yuri exhaled his frustration with the Canadian in one breath, and pushed JJ’s arm off of him. It was heavy and he hated how close JJ was to him. He needed personal space, a concept that seemed foreign to the Canadian.

“What’s wrong kitten?” JJ teased.

“Cut it Canada” Yuri said, the last ‘a’ slurring a bit in his drunken state. He made a biting motion toward JJ’s face, just to intimidate him, the man was getting on his nerves. The only thing that annoyed Yuri Plisetsky more than JJ, was JJ when he was drunk.

“You know,” JJ whispered. Yuri cringed from the feeling of JJ’s breath on his face. “You can stop pretending to hate me now, it’s just us.”

“Are YOU KIDDING ME? I’m not, no, I’m NOT. Just cut it out, cut it, CUT IT OUT” Yuri cried, cutting off JJ each time he opened his mouth.

“I’m just hanging out with my friends.”

“We’re not your friends,” Yuri grabbed Otabek’s arms and started pulling, desperate to get away from the most annoying of his competitors. “Come on Beka.”

He couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across his face as he felt Otabek follow him without resistance. Apparently Otabek cared more about him than the other man who will not be named. ‘Out of sight, out of mind” Yuri thought to himself. Otabek was definitely much cooler than JJ, Yuri was honestly surprised he was friends with such a cool person but he was glad they were. He felt he could depend on Otabek, tell him anything, and he doubted the other man would judge him.

* * *

 

Otabek let Yuri drag him away from the other skater. He never really paid much attention to JJ even though the other man was constantly trying to buddy up to him. His time was much better spent with his new friend. It helped him to remind himself that Yuri was his friend.

“Ugh he totally ruined the mood” Yuri said, before starting to take off his jacket “Is it hot in here?”

“A lot less than earlier” Otabek remarked, picking the jacket up from the floor where Yuri had discarded it. “Less people means less body heat.”

“Whatever Mr. Science Man”, Yuri teased. Otabek’s eyes widened as Yuri began pulling off his tie “Ties are so stupid, whose idea were they anyway?” Soon the tie was on the floor and Yuri was reaching for Otabek’s tie.

Otabek dodged the hand making its way toward his neck.  “Maybe we should get you back to your room.”

“But Beka, I’m not tired.”

“Okay. Then how about we just go and hang out there?” Otabek asked. Otabek wasn’t sure what kind of drunk Yuri was but he’d already shed two items of clothing. This wouldn’t be good for his image if he stayed. Plus Otabek had the sneaking suspicion that if he brought the other boy back he would indeed turn out to be tired.

“Okay” Yuri said, reaching out and quickly poking Otabek’s face, much more playfully than earlier. Otabek held back a smile. He’d never seen Yuri acting this carefree. It was cute. He looked down and saw Yuri playing with the cuff of his shirt, his hair falling down in front of his face, the braids barely holding it back now. Otabek hated to admit it but JJ was right, sometimes Yuri really could be like a kitten. Lashing out at people he hated but playing around with those he liked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I just found out I have a family thing that will take up my whole day tomorrow so there will be no upload. However, since I was thinking about cutting Sunday uploads anyway I might post a mini chapter then, just to give you guys something.
> 
> Thank you for reading, any comments are appreciated!


	7. Good Night, Sweet Prince

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A short chapter, but one that contains content I have been waiting very patiently to share with you all.

Thankfully, Otabek was able to sneak Yuri out of the room without anyone noticing. They didn’t need someone spotting them and starting a conversation, one that would both take forever to complete and trap them there. After leaving the banquet hall he successfully managed to drag Yuri back to his room without much protest from the younger boy. All his remaining clothes stayed in place as well, which was also quite helpful. It meant less for Otabek to manage and less of a chance of him getting distracted, definitely a bonus.

“Yuri, where’s your key?” Otabek asked, shifting Yuri’s weight so he could open the wooden door.

“I don’t know”, Yuri mumbled fumbling at his pockets. This boy would be the death of him.

Otabek searched the pockets of Yuri’s jacket. The only thing he found was Yuri’s phone. Otabek took the time to inspect the honey comb and tiger case, getting a good look at it for the first time. ‘Where did he even find this?’ Otabek wondered to himself. Though in a weird way it did seem very Yuri.

“Nothing. Are you sure it’s not in your pockets?” He considered checking himself but that would be way too awkward. He also doubted Yuri was currently drunk enough to be _that_ stupid.

“Yea” Yuri adjusted his jaw, creating a very audible popping sound. Otabek wondered how he was fine after that but, Yuri didn’t even acknowledge it so Otabek assumed he was ok.

“Okay, I’m going to take you to my room for now then.” he said, unsure of where else to leave Yuri. His teammates were all back in their rooms, and he doubted Yuri would consent to staying with one of them anyone. As much as Otabek liked to think Yuri liked his teammates, Yuri was very bad at showing it.

“m’kay” Yuri said, slurring his words.

Otabek half dragged Yuri back to his room. The combination of the late hour and alcohol leaving Yuri fairly unable to walk on his own.

He propped Yuri up against the red and gold wallpaper so he could find his key. Otabek pushed open the door, letting Yuri through first.

 

* * *

 Yuri wobbled into the still neat hotel room. The fluffy green comforter of the bed looked so inviting. He let himself collapse onto it.

The bed didn’t smell like the room. It smelled earthy, like being outside after a summer rain shower. That was the best way his hazy mind could describe it. ‘But better, definitely better’ Yuri thought to himself. Yuri vaguely remembered this smell from his motorcycle ride however, that one contained much more leather smell, and this was more purely Otabek. It fit him. Yuri drunk in the feeling of safety he associated with the smell. The peace of it forcing his eyes to close and helping him quickly fall asleep.

* * *

 

Otabek looked down at the sleeping Yuri and smiled, hiding the expression out of habit. He couldn’t help but echo Horatio by whispering “Good night, sweet prince,” (V.ii.397) thankfully the rest of the quote didn’t apply. Yuri really did look like a sleeping prince though. The way his mouth hung open slightly, the way his hair fell on and around his face. How his hand lay open next to him, his fingers gracefully bent. Part of Otabek wanted to fill the space between those fingers, but Yuri just looked too peaceful, and Otabek didn’t want to wake him up.

Otabek figured he should get some sleep himself. He looked over and saw the wooden chair in the corner of the room. That would work well enough. He sank down into it after taking his jacket off, his limbs hung over parts of it as he tried to twist himself into a comfortable position. This was one time Otabek was happy to be a bit shorter than average.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to Shakespeare for his amazing words. The quote is from Hamlet for anyone who isn't aware. By the way, me being the Theatre nerd that I am has to announce that the Tony's are on tonight and I'm super excited. Hope I didn't scare anyone too much with the quote, but honestly I don't think I could ever kill off our angry tiger. :) Have a nice day everyone!


	8. Final Farewells

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the final day of the Grand Prix Finals and Yuri and Otabek will have to say their final farewells of the trip.

Otabek woke up to find Yuri standing over him.

“Morning”

“I coulda slept on the chair stupid.” Yuri turned, “It’s my fault anyway. I was the one who got stupidly drunk.”

“It’s no problem Yura.” Otabek said, half asleep, the nickname rolling off his tongue before he had even realized it. He wondered what Yuri thought about the nickname, he hadn’t taken well to other nicknames Otabek had heard him called. The other boy turned, looking at him with his beautiful green eyes. Way too powerful for this time in the morning. He searched for an answer in Yuri’s face. Unable to find one, Otabek opened his mouth to ‘beg forgiveness’.

“Yura. I like it” Yuri said beaming before Otabek could apologize for the unintentional nickname.

Otabek was stunned. He blinked rubbing at his eyes, pushing away the sleepy feeling in his mind.

“Hey Yuri?”

“Hey who?” Yuri asked, turning his head and challenging Otabek with his eyes, mouth pressed in a hard line.

“Yura?”

“Yess Beka?” The teasing yes and use of the nickname once again had Otabek’s heart fluttering.

“What time is it anyway?” Otabek said, holding back his laughter at how cute Yuri was being. It was okay to think of him as cute if he never said it right? Could Yuri read his thoughts? Definitely not, he probably would have dumped Otabek long ago if he could.

 “10:30ish”

“Ah.”

“Yea….Okay,” Yuri said, clapping his hands. “I’m gonna head out, they’re probably all freaking out by now, wondering why I’m not up or whatever.” Yuri gave him a very tired look.

“Do you know where your key is now?” Otabek asked, wanting to make sure his friend could actually get back into his room.

“Huh?” Yuri asked before a shadow passed over his face, “Fuck Mila has my key.” Yuri shook his head. “I asked her to put it in her purse, because it was too annoying in my pocket, and I didn’t want it to fall out.” He paused “I’m never gonna hear the end of this.” Yuri groaned, pulling out his phone. “And this useless thing is out of battery.” he said, throwing it down on the bed.

“Yura” Otabek said, capturing his attention “Do you want to borrow mine? It’s on the nightstand.”

“Thanks Beka” Yuri said grabbing the phone and bringing it over for Otabek to unlock.

After a very rushed conversation in Russian, Yuri handed the phone back to Otabek. He had understood very little of the conversation, Yuri could talk very fast in his native language, it was amazing.

“Well she insisted on coming here, sorry to bother you like this.” Yuri summarized.

“It’s fine.” Otabek said before he got up and grabbed them both some food from the fridge.

 

A few moments later there was a knock on the door.

“Ah, there’s the lost kitten, safe and sound.” Mila pushed into the room after enveloping Yuri in a hug, making her way toward Otabek.

“I’m not a kitten grandma!”

“Now Yuri I thought we talked about that.” Mila pouted at the younger boy. “Anyway,” she said with a clap. Mila turned to Otabek. “Thank you for taking care of him, I should have known to text you. I was honestly freaking out when I found his key this morning.”

“No problem” Otabek politely cut her off.

“Well we should get going, Yakov’s gonna kill us if we’re not ready to go in time.

“Bye Beka” Yuri said before stepping out the door.

 “Bye Yura” Mila’s eyebrows raised in surprise to the nickname, but she otherwise stayed quiet.

“Goodbye Otabek, thanks.” She let the door close behind her, and with that Otabek was alone.

He turned surveying the room around him.

“Well I should probably get packing” he said aloud to nobody in particular.

 

* * *

Yuri headed back to his own room. Mila babbling on next to him about some skater from Italy she had met. Yuri wasn’t really paying attention. Inside his room, now that was the problem. Clothes and costumes were everywhere. He was not excited to deal with the mess.

He opened the door and heard Mila sigh at the sight his thoughts had been focused on. “Seriously Yuri? It’s been what? Five days? You do know you’re not actually a rock star right?”

“Whatever, are you gonna help me or not?”

“Well it looks like I don’t really have a choice. You’ll never make it out of here otherwise.” Mila said, laughing. Despite all her protesting, she seemed happy enough to get the chance to hang out more with him.

He walked in, pushing past her and set to work. Yuri promised himself that if he finished early he could see if Otabek wanted to hang out again before they left. He started to formulate a timetable in his head. When he realized he had no idea when Otabek’s plane left, he cursed himself for not knowing and starting throwing things in suitcases as quickly as possible. There was no way he would work so hard to clean up quickly and then miss his friend. Thankfully they finished with time to spare. Yuri quickly threw Mila out of the room, despite her protests and pulled out his phone.

Yuri: Hey do you still have that motorcycle?

Otabek: For a couple more hours, why?

Yuri: Before you go want to take me for another ride?

Yuri was bouncing with anticipation. He decided to pass the time by fidgeting with Otabek’s contact. Thankfully an answer came shortly.

Beka: Meet me downstairs.

Yuri rushed out of the room, not bothering to search his suitcases for a jacket on the way out.

Soon enough he found himself once again hugging Otabek’s back, trying not to fall off of the bike. The ride was much more peaceful this time. Enjoyable without the impending threat of death by fangirls. The wind in his hair felt nice, and Otabek was a nice shield when it got too intense. The hour Yuri spent sitting behind Otabek passed all too quickly and he soon found them pulling back into the hotel parking lot.

Otabek was putting the two helmets back onto the bike. “Wait,” Yuri said, a fake confidence in his voice. “Give me your phone.” He held out his hand. Otabek raised an eyebrow but relented. Yuri quickly went into his contact and added the nickname from earlier. Leaving it as a surprise for Otabek to find later. It was only fitting the each had each other listed under their new names. They were friends after all and, Yuri hoped at least, this is what friends did. He handed the phone back.

“Thanks.”

“No problem Yura. I’ll see you.”

“Yea. Bye.” He said pulling Otabek into a quick hug. “Now don’t miss your flight on account of me. I will not be the reason for any excuses.”

He stood there watching Otabek walk away with the bike. Yuri felt unsatisfied with the goodbye, he was unsure why but felt like it was missing something.

* * *

 

Otabek pulled away, hearing Yuri’s words. He started heading back to his room to grab his things. Yuri was right he had to head to the airport. He was cutting it a bit close on his flight. He stopped himself from looking back, not knowing what he would do if he did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> By the way I am really thankful to the people who let me know if they notice something's off and if you happen to notice anything in the future please feel free to point it out to me.
> 
> Also, shoutout to Mila who has my favorite line this chapter "You do know you’re not actually a rock star right?"
> 
> Also, thank you so much to everyone enjoying the story and all the people who leave comments. I love hearing what you guys think! <3 Have a nice weekend.


	9. Time In The Sky

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first hours apart since they've met in Barcelona.

It was a long plane ride back to reality for Otabek. The past few days had been nothing short of amazing, but now he was sitting on a flight that would take him over five hours away from Yuri. He had been so hopeful about the possibility of meeting Yuri in Barcelona on the flight out. Even the rational voice in his head had had trouble calming him. He had finally made it to the same ice as the younger man, but now that life was putting this distance between them reality came crashing down upon him. ‘You are just another friend from a competition’, the voice told him.

He put his headphones on, attempting to drown out his thoughts with a song.

 

* * *

 Yuri lay back in the airplane seat, attempting to find a comfortable position. He was both lucky and unlucky enough to get the seat next to Yakov. Lucky because he wouldn’t have to deal with Mila’s teasing, but extremely unlucky because Yakov saw this as a good opportunity to give him yet another lecture about his skating. He always got a lecture no matter how well he did. All he wanted to do was enjoy his victory but neither Victor nor Yakov would let him. There was always some way that he had screwed up. He nodded along until Yakov quieted, stopping his lecture to pull out some huge book. Apparently he had grown tired of admonishing Yuri. At this chance Yuri yanked his cheetah print headphones out of his bag and threw on some music, starting with his exhibition skate song. Otabek really did have good taste in music, and Yuri was glad he had found this song when he did. It had single handedly saved his exhibition, allowing him to choreograph a routine that was perfect for him.  It was much more representative of him than Lilia’s ballet on ice and adding Beka at the last minute had only made it more to Yuri’s liking. He smiled thinking of Beka’s mouth around his finger and the crowd’s reaction to the perfect execution of it all, assured he would never regret the change and late addition.

* * *

 

 Otabek couldn’t focus on the music playing from his phone. He pulled the headphones out of his ears, finally forcing himself to realize how badly he had fallen. He leaned back, letting the memories wash over him. The surprise at seeing Yuri at the hotel, those green eyes boring into to him as Yuri yelled, catching him off guard with the sudden attention. Otabek could feel Yuri’s hands around his waist on the borrowed bike, forcing him to tighten his grip on the handlebars to keep himself alert. His mind brought all the little things that had made an impression that had contributed to the feeling in his heart to attention now. Though, he had to admit the moment he had truly fallen. They were at a little café he had found while riding around the night before. It was small, overlooked by most tourists but it had made enough of an impression on him that when he looked for somewhere to take Yuri his mind brought him back there. As they were sitting at the table, Yuri had gone from complaining about Victor to telling Otabek about his cat to so many other topics. His eyes came alive with each word no matter what he was talking about. Otabek had fallen once he learned about Yuri’s music tastes. Of course he had been unable to muster the courage to tell Yuri about his own experience, but the way Yuri talked about his favorite bands and genres was enough to build a connection. For Otabek, music was more than just a pastime, it was an intense expression of emotion, a conversation, and from what Yuri was saying, he felt the same way. Otabek had learned who Yuri was through his taste in music. Looking back now, Otabek could tell that was when he had fallen the farthest.

The plane jostled Otabek, hitting a bit of turbulence and briefly pulling him out of his thoughts. He readjusted, moving in his seat carefully so as not to disturb the old woman sitting next to him.

This was too much. Flying through the air Otabek realized his true situation. He was high on the drug that was Yuri Plisetsky and he needed to come down. His feelings were getting too strong. He realized he needed to stop this before it became unbearable. Stop it before he couldn’t turn it off anymore, before it shot through his veins like fire, because he was sure that it had the power to. Those emerald eyes held worlds. They were indescribably beautiful. They were both gentile and destructive. There was a fire contained inside that could never be put out. Those eyes had the capacity for anything.

Otabek sat silently for the rest of the ride. Planning how to retrain his rebellious mind. Not really sure how to.

 

* * *

 Yuri stood in the airport, waiting with the other skaters for Yakov to get the car to pick them up. They were prattling on about their time at the GPF and he was tired of listening to their stories for the thousandth time. He pulled out his phone, typing out a tweet about being back in Russia after his win. Still bored, he started scrolling through Instagram and saw a picture Otabek had posted of them at the banquet. Yuri felt his lips curl up into a smile. It had been a fun night. He decided to text his new friend, hoping he would offer some entertainment that Georgi and Mila were failing to provide.

After he sent the message he stared anxiously at his phone waiting for a reply.

Yuri jumped as a voice from over his shoulder teased “Oh! Who’s Beka Yuri?”

“Goddammit Georgi, Don’t do that!” Yuri said before he was cut off by Mila-

“Wait is Yuri texting… Yuri are you texting Otabek?”

Yuri groaned. Maybe this was a mistake. He should have waited until he was alone to text Otabek.

“Leave me alone!” He said, clutching his phone to his chest. It hit him then that Otabek was probably still in the air. He most definitely should have waited.

“Come on Yuraaaaa, just let me see!” Mila said, clawing at his arms.

“Don’t call me that!” It just felt wrong to hear her say the nickname. He was about to fire off an insult when a car honking violently caught him off guard. He looked up, and seeing Yakov behind the wheel, began to make his way towards escape. Unfortunately, he got wedged into the car next to Georgi. He definitely couldn’t check his phone in this position now that he had to deal with Georgi leaning in and spouting bullshit about how he was great with relationships and that Yuri should let him help. What were he and Mila even insinuating? He and Otabek were just friends. Sure the older boy was super cool, but that didn’t mean Yuri had feelings for him. He pulled his headphones out again, blocking Georgi out and ending the conversation.

* * *

 

Otabek walked off the plane, carry-on in hand. He dropped the bag on one of the seats in the waiting area, and pulled out his phone to turn it back on. He couldn’t stop the smile from hitting his face when he saw the message that was waiting for him.

**Yura: Ugh back in Russia and I’m already annoyed with everyone around me again.**

‘So that’s what he did.’ Beka thought to himself as he looked at the nickname on his phone.

**Beka: Give them a chance, they might surprise you.**

A few moments later he received another message.

**Yura: Nah, nobody’s got a chance against you.**

As Otabek put his phone back in his pocket he willed his heart to stop beating at its current pace. If he couldn’t even follow his convictions for a couple of hours, how would he get permanent control over his feelings? This would take time. He took a walk to go pick up his bags. Maybe that would help him stop misconstruing the meanings of normal messages.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, I would like to thank my lovely new Beta reader. You can all thank them for the jump in quality starting with this chapter.
> 
> Also, I'd like to apologize to anyone who I may have freaked out by naming the last chapter as I did ;) Anyway, don't worry in the future I promise I'll explicitly tell you all when the end comes.
> 
> Also, thank you for the comments and feedback! :)
> 
> Thanks for reading <3


	10. A Different Point of View

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a fun little bit from a different point of view than normal. I feel like even though Lilia can seem pretty cold, she also has the capacity to be super warm when she wants to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, so I had trouble finding the inspiration to start all week and I got the new chapter to my beta too late. So I figured just so you guys would have something to read I'd write something small to go in between the last chapter and the new one. Very short but I don't want to run into the next chapter too much. It's fun though and sets up a couple of things so yea, enjoy!

It had been easy to get the young skater home. He had never enjoyed socializing with the other team members that much, but it was when they got home that he became an issue.

Lilia opened the door to her apartment and immediately went into her room to set her bags down. The trip back from Barcelona had been a long one and she was looking forward to some relaxation with a nice glass of wine. She heard a thud behind her and upon returning to the the living room she discovered Yuri had left his bags right by the doorway.

“Yuri don’t just leave them there.” She hated sounding like a mother but while Yuri was living in Saint Petersburg with her she would have to occasionally. He was still too young to be all on his own.

“I’ll get them later.” The skater called out, sounding like the perfect example of the typical lazy teen. Lilia was about to say something when she felt Potya rub her leg. She bent down to pet the soft fur of the cat. “Hello Potya darling, I missed you too”. She loved the cat.

The door to Yuri’s room slammed shut. “Careful” she said, a warning sternness to her voice, before she returned her attention to the cat. “Come on let’s get you some food”. Lilia had asked someone to take care of the apartment while they were gone, but it felt good to be home feeding the cat and watering the plants herself. The routine of it all relaxed her.

In the kitchen, she heard Yuri screech “GRANDPA!” all the way in his room. Yuri quieted for a few seconds, probably to listen to the older man, and then started speaking very excitedly. Lilia thought he was talking about his medal but she did hear a semi familiar name pop up a couple of times. She assumed it was one of the other skaters, she normally only paid attention to her own. Lilia felt a warmness in her stomach at the thought of Yuri connecting with another skater though. He tended to withdraw occasionally and snapped at others a lot. A friend would be good for him.

She chuckled to herself. Yuri was most definitely a handful but she loved him. No matter how much of a mess he made or how loud he was Lilia would never consider kicking him out. She smiled, picking up the bags and shaking her head. What would she do with this boy?


	11. Snaps and Skypes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happens now that they are hours apart?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, just so you guys know my Beta was unable to get to this chapter. I wanted to get it to you guys as soon as possible, rather than holding off another week so this one is just my editing again.

Later that night Yuri was laying on his bed and playfully snuggling with his cat when he got Otabek’s reply.

**Beka: Sorry I had to get out of the airport and I got busy.**

**Yura: Well now that you’re free wanna skype?**

Yuri would jump at the chance to tell Otabek all that had happened in the hours they had been apart. He began forming ideas on the perfect way to explain just how obnoxious his teammates had been.

**Beka: Sure**

Yuri jumped up and after apologizing for scaring Potya, set his laptop up on the edge of the bed. After everything was set up to his liking, he sat up and anxiously awaited the call.

 “Otabek this is Potya, and Potya this is Otabek!” Yuri said, gesturing with his hands to introduce the two as soon as the call started. Potya strutted over to the laptop soon after, staring fixedly at the man on the screen. She had just barely started stepping on it when Yuri got his hands around the cat and lifted it up.

“Nice try, now say hi to Beka.” He held Potya out toward the screen and the cat gave in with a high pitched mrow.

Yuri watched as Otabek said, “Nice to meet you too Potya.” He was smiling like an idiot.

“Enough of that.” Yuri said, carefully releasing the cat on the floor. He had missed his fluffy companion while he was gone but this was his time to talk to Otabek. Potya ambled off the moment Yuri’s hands let go. “Now, how was your flight?” Yuri took a moment to investigate what he could see of Otabek’s apartment in the background of the video. He was sitting on a maroon couch. Behind him was a white wall with a breakfast bar. It looked nice, very clean, and modern. Yuri returned his attention to his friend’s face.

“Long” Otabek responded, smile fading. Yuri chalked it up to the other boy being tired, which reminded him that they were no longer in the same country. He scrambled for his phone located on the other corner of the bed and looked at the time. It was roughly 11.

“Hey isn’t Kazakhstan three hours ahead? That makes it…” Yuri paused to count in his head, “2 am! What are you doing talking to me? You should be in bed!”

“Don’t worry about it,” the Kazakh said, shaking his head slightly, traces of a smile on his lips “I’m still on Barcelona time, not tired yet.” The older boy paused, a devilish smile appearing on his lips, “And besides weren’t you supposed to be the one who egged me on into making bad choices.”

Yuri eyed his friend, checking for signs of a lie.

“Don’t be an idiot Beka. You need your sleep.” Yuri winked as he added, “Especially if you want a prayer of beating me at worlds.” teasing the older boy.

“Okay, okay I get it” Otabek said before entering a calming stillness. “Goodnight Yura.”

Yuri smiled, “Get some sleep” and ended the call.

He looked down at Potya, silently judging him from the doorway. “What?” he asked.

“Mrow”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Everyone’s got an opinion.” He said scoping up the cat. “Just forget about it, let’s watch some TV before bed.” He may have won the GPF but he still had to practice tomorrow, the season wasn’t over yet.

* * *

 

Otabek stared at the computer, watching as the screen saver took over, breaking him from the spell the device had had him under. Suddenly he didn’t feel like being inside anymore. There was too much energy coursing through his veins. He pulled on a pair of joggers and a gray tank top, slipped on his sneakers, and headed out the door of his apartment.

When he reached the street he took a breath. Appreciating the wind that played against the skin on his arms. He threw his headphones in his ears, turned on one of many running playlists, and as “Warriors” by Imagine Dragons began to play in his ears he took off. Next came “Believer” by Imagine Dragons, another high energy song choice. Both contained a good beat. They let Otabek clear his head through the relentless tiring of his body that was running along to them. As “Mercy” by Hurts began playing in his ears he slowed slightly and entered a jog. After a couple more songs had gone by Otabek slowed once again, having got the initial boost of energy out. He threw his hands in his pockets. He found himself walking aimlessly as “Brave Enough” by Lindsey Stirling came on. He thought about the cruelty of the universe in the moment. The song that too perfectly described his feelings. This was why he loved music. He slowed to sit on the edge of a fountain in the middle of a nearby park. Letting the music take over his brain. Eventually, he found he was able to pull himself off the edge and start heading back. It was definitely late and he needed to get back to his sleep cycle.

The next morning Otabek woke up, made breakfast and headed out to the rink. He decided to forego the day off he had been given. For now he’d take Yuri’s words to heart and choose to focus on beating the younger man at Worlds.

 

After about a week of focusing on practice and occasionally texting his new friend, Otabek found himself in deep need to be whisked away to another world. As soon as he got home from practice, he walked over to his bookshelf and pulled out the copy of The Phantom of the Opera he had been reading before he left for the GPF. After a bit more than a couple of chapters he heard his phone sound. Otabek looked down to see he had gotten a snapchat from Yuri. He was smiling, and taking up half of the frame was the ball of fluff Yuri had previously introduced to him as his cat.

Otabek sent one back holding up his book, head tilted slightly to the side.

Another snapchat. This time it was a picture of Yuri’s laptop, cat sticker in the top left corner. American Horror Story playing on the screen.

He sent Yuri another snap, giving the boy a thumbs up with the word “Nice!” written across the screen.

He put the book down on the end table, getting up to grab some food. He had accidently let himself get absorbed by a world of fiction and skipped a meal again. Staring into the fridge he decided to make a salad and took out the necessary ingredients as another message popped onto the screen.

Otabek’s immediate reaction was a bubbling laugh that, try as he may, he could not hold down. Yuri was using some filter that contained a very glittery pink beard. The photo had been so distracting that he had to replay the snap in order to read the message written across it. “How was practice?”

Otabek snapped a photo of the salad in progress. “Good, got out a bit late. Decided I should eat something instead of just sitting around reading.”

The next snap showed Yuri in a pair of virtual cat ears and Otabek had to fight not to screenshot it considering how cute Yuri looked. His nose was all scrunched up in part of his over exaggerated mask of a stern face. “Yeah definitely.” it read across Yuri’s chest.

 

The next day Otabek was surprised to get a very rapid series of texts during one of his breaks at the rink.

**Yura: Beka, Beka, Beka guess what!?!**

He couldn’t resist teasing the younger boy.

**Beka: You’ve finally been tracked down and kidnapped by those angels I saved you from?**

**Yura: Angels? Lol as if.**

**Yura: Anyway don’t get me off topic.**

**Yura: I found a site that’ll let us remotely watch movies together.**

**Beka: Really?**

**Yura: Yea.**

**Beka: Good. Then I’ve got the perfect idea for the first one.**

During one of their skype calls Otabek and Yuri had gone over what movies and shows they had each seen and missed. Yuri was currently catching up on American Horror Story as Otabek was watching How I Met Your Mother. But one of the biggest surprises of the conversation had been that Yuri hadn’t seen The Princess Bride, which was one Cult Classic film Otabek personally felt everyone had to watch.

 

* * *

 

**Yura: Oooo I’m excited. What is it?**

By this time Yuri had grown to trust Otabek’s taste. All the music they had shared had been amazing and though he had only finished a season Yuri was loving American Horror Story.

**Beka: You’ll just have to wait and see.**

**Yura: No fair.**

Yuri waited a few minutes to prove his point but gave in when he realized Otabek wouldn’t budge. He was just too excited for whatever masterpiece Otabek had in store.

**Yura: Fine**

**Yura: When’s your next day off?**

**Beka: Sunday.**

**Yura: Argh I can’t do then…Wednesday?**

**Beka: After 12**

**Yura: Cool it’s a date!**

Yuri then remembered when Mila, Georgi, and Victor found his phone a few months ago and decided to go through his messages. They had even baselessly assumed he was going on a date with someone he had been texting that he hadn’t even liked that much. That exact experience was why Yuri found himself wishing he could take back his wording.

**Yura: UGH, just in case the old lady or the drama king and queen decide to snoop in my phone AGAIN I’d like to clarify to the losers that it’s not an actual date.**

Yuri threw his head back, realizing most people, him included, would take a message like that as something to be offended at.

**Yura: Sorry about the need for that Beka. Team Russia can be pretty annoying about these things and I’d like to spare you from their teasing.**

* * *

Later on that night Otabek heard his phone go off again. Assuming it Yuri begging for more information about his movie choice he picked it up but was surprised to see the name of a different Russian figure skating star.

**Mila: Hey**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a note there will be references to The Princess Bride in the future. It shouldn't effect your experience if you haven't seen the movie but it will improve it if you have. Also, it's a pretty good film so you haven't seen it even if it's way in the future I'd consider checking it out.


	12. Hello My Name is Yuri Plisetsky Prepare to Die

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Otabae and Yuri end up watching that film together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey :) I tried to avoid spoilers but this chapter is them watching a movie and their reactions to it so if you don't want princess bride spoilers skip the chapter. (Also, I tried my best to make it so people who have and haven't seen the film can understand but I'm sorry if it's a bit confusing for non viewers. Hopefully, knowledge of the film shouldn't make a difference it should just make the chapter more fun to read.)

Though the days went by slowly, Yuri was able to make it to Wednesday afternoon without dying of curiosity. He raced home from the dance studio, feeling like he was flying after all the stretching Lilia had made him do and opened his laptop. As he threw his bag against a pile of clothes he quickly pulled open Skype and the website he had found, excited for whatever Otabek had planned.

“Heey” he answered the call that came in as soon as the app had loaded with a smile.

“Ready?” Otabek asked with a mischievous smile, one eyebrow cocked.

“Yep!” He pulled the laptop off his desk and onto his bed. Movies were always better wrapped in blankets. His favorite, out of the millions he owned, was the one currently residing at the end of his bed. It was soft and the pattern was a blend of both cheetah and tiger print. He pulled it around him as he added. “So are you finally ready to tell me what we’re watching Mr. Mysterious?” He had asked Otabek many times since they had first talked about the idea but was unsuccessful at getting the answer he wanted each time.

Yuri gave Otabek’s reply of “You’ve waited so long, what’s a few more minutes?” a well-deserved groan.

Thankfully after a couple of minutes of setup they were finally ready to start the film. Yuri’s knees were bouncing with impatience under the blanket as the opening commercials started. He couldn’t help but smile at the lion roaring in the opening. Finally, the title screen popped up and Yuri found out what film they were watching for the first time.

‘The Princess Bride’…it was definitely not a film he would have picked out himself.  “Wait what is this Beka?” Yuri asked as a video game showed up on the screen. “I thought this was supposed about a princess”. Otabek remained silent. “Bekaaa?”

“Just give it a chance Yuri.”

“Fine.” Yuri pulled the blankets closer to him. Preparing for what could be a very boring yet confusing movie. At the mention of “Fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants…” Yuri got even more confused ‘What is this movie? Though the promise of violence is a good sign at least.’ he thought to himself. The only thing that stopped him from immediately requesting they watch something else was that Beka had picked it out.

Yuri watched as Buttercup ordered the farmboy around. “She’s a bitch.” He commented, quick to disprove of the way she used the boy. “She doesn’t deserve him”

“Give her a chance” Otabek had a pleading quality to his voice.

“As you wish?” Yuri laughed, forgetting about their earlier conversation. “That’s so sappy. Oh and here’s the sunset.” He laughed even harder as the story broke again for the young boy’s question “Is this a kissing book?” “Exactly what I was thinking, what kind of romantic sappy shit are you into Otabek?”

Yuri could hear Otabek’s exhale of breath.

“Just give it a chance Yura, and if you don’t shut up you’re gonna be confused later.”

Yuri closed his mouth before he fired off another response and decided to give the movie another chance for Otabek, he had been right about so many things before, how could he be so off about this

He heard the tiniest “Awe” escape from Otabek’s lips at Wesley’s farewell. This was still way to sappy for the young Russian.

* * *

Otabek was torn between watching one of his favorite films and drinking in Yuri’s response to it. While it wasn’t the best he had a feeling Yuri would warm up to the film as it went on. Over the next few minutes Yuri he heard various reactions from Yuri.

“PIRATES!!” “Yes I agree with the kid!” “Ugh she’s so over dramatic she could rival the Russian team.” “See I told you she’s a bitch, look at how short it took for her to remarry.”

He finally broke his silence. “Yura.”

“She’s a total sellout Beka.”

“Just watch the movie.”

Things got quieter after that, with them both watching film more intently. Otabek was smiling, it had been so long since he’d last seen the film. Yuri’s commentary was hilarious but he’d come around, Otabek knew he’d like the film. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Yuri’s grasp on the blanket around him slacken as the furry monstrosity fell around him.

* * *

“He reminds me of Yakov” Yuri mused at the unnamed ringleader of the kidnappers who was currently going on a rant. “Very angry, very small, old body” He pulled his leg up for a second, popping his hip joint to make himself more comfortable.

Another chuckle from Otabek as he chimed in any time anyone said “Inconceivable”-how many times has he seen this movie Yuri wondered? Though minutes later the film seemed to get more interesting.

“Shrieking eels? Yes! Finally some action” Yuri said excitement growing as the sounds intensified.

* * *

“NOOOOOO!” Otabek heard Yuri exclaim just as the film switched back to the boy and his grandfather. The other end stayed silent, even after the film switched back. Otabek couldn’t stop himself from breaking it to repeat “inconceivable” once again. He was fairly proud of the fact that even after so much time he still hadn’t missed one.

* * *

Yuri gasped as the rope was cut. Had they really just killed off a new character? He smiled as the man was shown below, “Black mask huh? Quite mysterious.” Otabek was silent until it came time to repeat the word he seemed so fixated on once again. He could hear Otabek repeat “Inconceivable” in perfect time with the film, then “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.” Yuri still didn’t understand Otabek’s obsession with the film but at least he knew why Otabek had been so focused on that word. It was pretty funny Yuri had to admit.

“Oooo swords” Yuri laughed about the people in masks line, thinking about how Georgi’s short program used so much makeup it could be considered a mask. Well at least it was true, he definitely didn’t trust Georgi. He was just as impatient as the Spaniard for the swordfight to begin. “Omg don’t trust him” Yuri couldn’t help but exclaim as the man was offered help reaching the top. He wanted to see a swordfight meaning the masked man had to climb and live. Maybe he was starting to get into the film just a bit.

The tension leading up to the swordfight was unbearable. The tricks involved left him smiling. He didn’t even know who to root for. Maybe the Spaniard, he was helping to start a war and a war seemed like a fun option.

“I like that line though, the father one.” Yuri said trying to recall what Inigo had just said. Otabek repeated the line, perfectly. Yuri followed his words, embellishing them for drama “Hello, My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father, prepare to die.” Flourishing his challenge with a fake sword swish.

He was captivated by their dialogue and fast movements. This is pretty good. He hadn’t been expecting something so cool from the same sappy princess movie that had included that “As you wish” moment earlier.

* * *

Otabek tried as hard as he could to stifle his excitement at the following events. Not wanting to spoil anything for the new viewer of the film.

Yuri cheered through the fight with Fezzik, rooting for the mysterious man in black. He smiled at the response, glad to see Yuri finally getting into it.

When the prince showed up Yuri’s first question was “What’s up with his sleeves?”

“What?” Otabek asked immediately looking him over, trying to see what Yuri had picked up on.

“He doesn’t have the bottom half of his sleeve on. It looks so stupid.”

“I- I’ve never noticed that before.” Otabek said, Yuri was right though it did look stupid and it was the perfect look for Humperdink.

* * *

“This Yakov guy thinks too much” Yuri exclaimed a couple of minutes into the Sicilian’s explanation of his choice. How long would he continue to not make it? It was kind of hilarious though… and when the answer was finally revealed he couldn’t help but be impressed.

“That’s a dirty trick-I like him too”

“Who else?” He heard Otabek ask, voice husky from the time they had spent in silence.

“The Spanish guy.”

“Ah.” Otabek said knowingly. Yuri cursed himself for not knowing what was coming up next in the film. Though when Buttercup refered to the man in black as ‘The Dread Pirate Roberts’ Yuri couldn’t help but love him more.

After a few minutes he watched as the characters entered the fire swamp. It seemed intriguing, though the return to sappy romance was not the best. He agreed with the little boy. Yuri snuggled into his sheets preparing to watch the rest of the movie, only breaking the silence to repeat quotes he particularly favored. Lines like “We are men of action, lies do not become us”, “there will be blood tonight”, “There’s a big difference between mostly dead and all dead”, “I’m not a witch I’m your wife”, and “That is what to the pain means.” just simply couldn’t be ignored.

And every time the little boy had interrupted, Yuri found he had been thinking the same things. His heart warming just as the character on the screen’s did.

By the end of the film, Yuri had even found himself forgiving the sappy nature of some of the lines. He was so engaged in the story going on he barely noticed. Yuri was surprised to find himself screaming Inigo’s famous lines out with him. Lilia had banged on his door for that one and after a quick sorry he was back to the film.

The credits rolled.

“Sooo?” Otabek asked.

“I liked the fire swamp, and all the sword fights.”

“And?”

“And it was pretty funny, the story was good I guess”…no way would he admit that the movie had somehow wormed its sappy way into his heart. “Thanks Otabek.”

* * *

The next afternoon Otabek got a text from Mila during his lunch break.

**Mila: So I heard you showed Yuri Princess Bride**

**Otabek: You know the film?**

**Mila: Of course. But yea the kiddo’s been yapping about it all day.**

**Mila: Thanks for that by the way.**

**Otabek: I don’t think that means what you think it means…**

**Mila: Okay between the number of times I’ve heard that and I am Yuri Plisetsky you killed my father prepare to die I’m so done. It’s driving me insane.**

**Otabek: Oh no, it’s so rare to find another fan.**

**Mila: Hopefully he’ll stop soon and I can go back to loving the film. We can chat about it then. For now it is simply a fight to the pain to anyone who brings it up.**

He couldn’t help but smile as he walked back to the ice. Not only had Yuri actually liked the film, he had found another fan of it. Otabek was sure his family would be relieved he would have someone else to talk to in the days after he watched the film again in the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone, sorry I disappeared for a couple of weeks a bunch of stuff happened (including my birthday, yay I'm old now!) and it got super hard to find time to write. I promise you even if I take a week or two off in the future I will always comeback. That said while I am still going to try to post every weekend we may move to every other. Hopefully the fact that this is a bit of a longer chapter will make up for the weeks without. Have a nice week!!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


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